A Crow's Call
by DrWhohouselock221b
Summary: "His dark eyes gazed up at the night sky, he thought he could see the fluttering wings of The Crow above him. But that was odd… He could really use Albus's help right now, couldn't he?" Albus Dumbledore had bonded a Crow to a young Severus Snape a long time ago as a safety measure for the spy. A dying Snape wishes the Crow would fetch his dear friend. Tags inside.
1. Dumbledore's Wish

**11/7/2018 UPDATE Please Read:**  
Hello! I'm so glad you've decided to read my story. To keep it short and sweet, I have been on hiatus from writing for a while and have started to get back into it. As I was writing the next two chapters of this stories and I may have caused some plot holes (very large ones in fact) and I am currently in the process of fixing them. I'm going to be updating all of the chapters within the next week, so some things about the story might change. General maintenance and tweaking is going to be going on. Don't hesitate to check back in though! Other than that, I hope you enjoy my story!

 **A/N:**  
This fic is totally unrelated to any existing timeline. So, Snape's a spy for Dumbledore, Remus is here, Poppy… y'know, the crew. There's gonna be a lot of Snape!whump… so prepare yourself. Dumbledore/Snape friendship and some father/son NO SLASH, although, if you squint and look really hard you can make out the vague figure of some Snape/Remus… Fair warning, you probably won't see much of the trio in this, and also I made some stuff up about some House elves and a spell… don't go looking on the HP wiki for them.  
Also I apologize for the extremely short first chapter, the rest are nearly 3 times the length of this one.

* * *

Some time ago, during Severus Snape's first months as a spy for Dumbledore, Albus had proposed an idea. A safety measure for the young man who, in Albus' eyes, was as dear to him as his own son. Albus had summoned a crow to him, it had flown through the open window in his office. Severus could remember the memory as clear as day.

" _A crow? Why have you summoned a crow, Albus?" Snape's youthful voice questioned._

" _For your safety, Severus. I wish to bind this crow to you, as a safety measure." The crow landed on his wrist. "If you are in such a way that you need my help, the bird will depart you on its own accord and come to me." The Crow's beady eyes stared at Severus blankly._

" _How will you know where to find me?" Severus asked._

 _Then Dumbledore was reaching to his desk where a small leather, cylindrical case sat. It was meant to hold small notes, to be transported by winged animals. Albus buckled the leather belt around The Crow's leg, then reached for a small piece of fresh parchment._

" _This parchment is enchanted to hold your location on it at all times. But only I am able to read it, so that no tainted hands should be able to come across your whereabouts accidently." He pulled out his wand. "Now, hold out your hand, palm up."_

 _Albus then spoke the incantation, a round, blue mist rose from the center of The Crow's chest, coming to press itself into Severus' open palm. The light grew brighter for a few seconds then diminished into nothingness._

A good man, Albus was. And now, feeling the ever growing searing pain in his left forearm, Snape wondered if The Crow would be departing him tonight. It most likely would not be returning to float high above him in the open sky, it's watchful beady eyes always trained on him. With a deep breath, he disapparated away, to the grave of Tom Riddle.


	2. The Gift of Death

Chapter 2

"Welcome, my loyal servants." Voldemort's raspy voice spoke, his arms opening wide to the group surrounding him.

"I have called you here today with some dreadful news." His pale eyes met several of the Death Eaters before resting on the dark orbs of Severus Snape. "We have a traitor among us."

A ripple of uncertainty made it's way through the group.

"Now, we all know what happens to traitors. Do we not?" He turned, to the rest of the group.

"They do not deserve the gift of death, they must be left on the brink of it until their greatest wish is to die. My servants, someone will be wishing that upon themselves tonight." He gave a raspy and evil chuckle. Without a second glance, he pulled his wand out from his robes and yelled "Crucio!" The curse landed on Severus' chest.

He fell to the ground with a thud, the pain tore through every ounce of his being. Even with every cell on fire, he refused to let out even a whimper. He couldn't help the heel of his boots from digging into the damp ground, his fingers clawing at the dead grass of the cemetery.

Then the severe pain was gone leaving only neurons tingling all over his body. His heavy gasping breaths filled the silence.

He rolled to his side, then to his knees, then one knee, then he was staggering to his feet. His aching body was shaking slightly with the aftermath of enduring severe pain.

"It's so much harder doing this to one of my most beloved followers, Severus. You were one of my favorites. Always so loyal, quiet, but most of all, incredibly stubborn. That's what made you such a good follower, you believed my reign would do good for our world and refused to step down from that view. But now you've left my side, Severus. And I'm afraid you'll never get to see that world or share the glory of being on top of it."

Then his knees were buckling again and he was struggling to stay on his knees as his hands clenched into fists. His nails were making crescent cuts in his palms. His jaw was clenched, his teeth bared in pain.

"Crucio Maxima!" Voldemort's voice echoed in his mind.

He hadn't endured this curse more than once, but he knew he wouldn't last much longer with this one. He had fallen to his side sometime in the last couple seconds. His whole body rigid and aching with the power of the curse. His breaths were shallow gasps in the cold air.

Voldemort had fallen to his knees swiftly beside the pale man.

"Do you wish you hadn't betrayed me, Severus? Do you wish you were dead yet?" The snake-like man's slithering tongue spoke next to his ear.

Snape was having a hard time staying awake then, his mind was tingling with the overloaded neurons. "You must have a scar to take with you to the grave, Severus, to remind you of the betrayal you have committed." Voldemort spoke the incantation, "Sectusfervi."

The feeling of a hot knife being pushed into his shoulder made him gasp with surprise, Voldemort's horrid smile was peering down at him. The spell began to move from his right shoulder in a diagonal line towards his chest, below his chin. Severus couldn't tell if he was breathing anymore, the only sound was the gasping breaths of his body trying to bring oxygen into his lungs.

He could feel the terrifying warmth of his blood soaking his black robes. It created a warm mass of cloth over his chest which was oddly comforting in the chilly night air. Then the pain had stopped, Voldemort's voice could be heard saying "My loyal followers, I shall not spare you the chance to punish your former Death Eater. Please, don't leave a single drop of blood in his veins." The ghost of a horrid smile was on his lips, "Take turns please." Then Voldemort had disapparated away to who knows where and the Death Eaters began to move closer. He braced for the next bouts of searing pain, but it never came. It wasn't clear to Snape why, he was only glad to feel the welcoming feeling of being released from the horribly powerful wand of Voldemort.

His dark eyes gazed up at the night sky, he thought he could see the fluttering wings of The Crow above him.

But that was odd… He could really use Albus's help right now, couldn't he?

He let a strangled groan out of his mouth as the full force of the wound across his chest set in. His hand brushed the wound, only to return covered in crimson and he could feel the dribble of blood dripping down the side of his face from a cut above his eyebrow. It dripped down and off his chin. His eyelids were becoming incredibly heavy…

Then someone's face swam into his blurry vision…

No, it couldn't be…

The Crow hadn't left,

Albus wouldn't know...

Albus's worried voice met his ears, "Severus! Severus, I need you to stay awake, Remus is here, he's going to apparate you to Poppy… Hold on, Severus. Please."

He was being settled into someone's strong arms and then the dizzying swirl of being apparated tugged at his being. They appeared outside the grounds of Hogwarts, but they had quickly made their way to the castle.

"Poppy! He's here." Remus yelled for Poppy, she came nearly running to the bed in which Remus had laid the injured Potions Master.

"Merlin, Severus." She whispered as she began unbuttoning his nearly black robes. "Remus, grab be those blood replenishing potions and the gauze pads."

Severus' eyelids fluttered, he hadn't passed out yet, much to his surprise. He let out a strangled moan as Poppy pressed the gauze pads to his now bare chest. "I'm sorry Severus, hold on." She accio'd a pain relieving potion, pushing it to his lips.

They waited for the potion to take effect, still trying to staunch the bleeding.

Severus continued to let out gasps of pain, his shallow breaths quickening in pace.

"Severus, is the pain subsiding?" Poppy asked urgently.

A moment of coherence ebbed into Snape's mentality, "No… Poppy make it stop, please." He begged. His hands grasped the sheets of the hospital bed.

Poppy glanced worriedly towards Remus, who was holding the nearly soaked through bandages to Severus' chest.

"Albus, the potions aren't working. Besides the blood replenishing potion, we're going to have to do this as rudimentary as possible, without magic." Poppy stood with Albus and Remus near the entrance to the hospital wing.

"Is it a curse, Poppy?" Remus asked.

"I'm afraid I'm not sure, it could be the sheer power of Voldemort's casting that keeps the wounds from healing. Voldemort harnesses a very powerful form of Dark Magic, as you know, Albus. I fear these wounds are much more severe than we initially thought. The pain relieving potions don't seem to be working very well, and he's broken into a cold sweat already."

Severus could be heard tossing on the bed, Poppy made her way over to him.

She dabbed a cloth on his shining forehead, his black air sticking to the sides of his face.

"I fear the pain is going to be much too great for him to keep on like this, Albus. You said Voldemort had been using the Crucio curse on him… his body is already weary. His mind can't be far off" Poppy's sad eyes lingered on the pale man.

* * *

Annnnd Scene! Thanks for reading these first two chapters! I always loved Snape, he's one of those broken soul type characters, always in trouble, but always willing to give up something for someone else, so I write a lot of Snape!centric fics.

As for this story, it may have two more chapters, then it'll be finished, but I have an entire list of story ideas I want to work on, just all depends on how much time I have. I'll have another one published soon though!

The other thing is, I used Crucio Maxima in this story which I'm borrowing from **Jade Slytherin** on Youtube. You can go look it up and watch the video. I've modified it, so instead of Crucio Maxima being a killing curse in the end, it CAN be stopped.

Other than that, thanks for reading, and enjoy the next chapter!

P.S. My own Sectusfervi spell (basically means Sever/Cut, and hot.). I used it as a kind of hot knife Sectumsempra spell. It leaves burning flesh and blood behind basically… I know, a little gorey, sorry 'bout that.


	3. A Rudimentary Recovery

Chapter 3

The night Severus was brought in had passed slowly, Remus hadn't left the infirmary for more than a few seconds and Albus had been forced out by Madam Pomfrey that morning. She had said "You are the headmaster, Albus. I understand your concern, but right now, you need to sleep. The children need you right now just as much as Severus does." And then he was being shoved into his gargoyle staircase to get freshened up and sleep.

The remaining students, there were quite a few of them, had heard nothing from Snape in the 4 days they had been off for Christmas, not that they had really wanted to. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had looked for him that morning after his absence from breakfast, but they gave up after 10 minutes.

Ron had pointed out that Snape's piercing glare had been absent since the 2nd day of break, as well as a certain air of humanity radiating off of him. Had he suddenly become reasonable towards the three and then disappeared in shame? Of course Harry had shoved that theory down Ron's throat as if to make him take it back. The git would do anything to make their lives miserable, he knew. Nonetheless, they still began to miss their classroom gossip about the professor. They instead spent their time with Hagrid and at the library, the thoughts of the dark haired professor slipping their thoughts.

Remus was reading a muggle newspaper by Snape's bed when Albus was finally permitted back into the infirmary. Severus's body had been shaking since the night before. Poppy had had to resort to the most basic form of medicine: Muggle. She had a very good friend of hers, who just happened to be Muggle born, supply her with the most medical supplies she could. An IV pole, saline, pain relieving "drugs" as they called them, and several other things.

Severus' hair had become matted to his face from the perspiration, Remus had been given the job of patting down his forehead while Poppy got the saline, antibiotics, and morphine hooked onto the IV pole. She had heavily bandaged the large gash from his shoulder to his navel and had also used a butterfly bandage for the gash above his eyebrow. There were dark, sickly circles around his eyes and his face was pale and gaunt. He hadn't woken yet.

Poppy left Remus and pulled Albus to the side, outside of Snape's curtained bed.

"Albus, once he is stable, we should move him to his dungeon, it will be more comfortable for him to recover in his own home rather than the common area of the infirmary."

"I do agree, Poppy. When do you think he will be ready to move?" Albus asked.

"Let's shoot for Thursday, that gives us two days. If he's not stable by then…" A dark look flashed across her eyes, and Albus immediately understood.

The next two days passed smoothly, only once had Poppy feared Severus condition was worsening. He had started to rustle in his sleep, his breathing had sped up significantly, he looked as though he was being tortured in his sleep. Remus had sat by his side, grasping his hand willing the nightmare to pass. The werewolf had become increasingly close to the professor in the past year. Not to mention the fact that Snape had saved Remus' life in an attack from some feral werewolves two months ago. They had been in human form but it had been 8 against 1 at the time. Snape had been summoned by the lone wolf as a last minute rescue, and the professor had come. Remus hadn't known why he had summoned Severus, of all people, but he had, and he was lucky for it. Now Remus had a life debt to Snape, which he had repaid by apparating him to Hogwarts, but now it was just the debt of friendship keeping him in his seat beside the potions master's bed.

Snape was to be moved to his dungeons soon. And perfecting timing, several students had come to the infirmary snooping around after a rumour had spread about Snape's grave condition, who had started it, no one knew.

Finally, Poppy and Albus came walking back into the infirmary.

"Remus, we're ready" Poppy said.

"How will we move him?" Remus asked.

Poppy summoned a stretcher, and Albus summoned Dobby to his side.

"Dobby is going to apparate him back to his chambers so we can meet him there. It's easier on him if he doesn't have to move much" Albus said.

"He's much to weak for that, though, isn't he?" Remus questioned.

"Dobby is in possession of a unique form of magic, only house elves can use. He can carry the effects of apparating on his body, so that others with him do not have to." Poppy finished.

"Dobby used to be a medi-elf for the Malfoy's during the first wizarding war, which is where he acquired the training to use this type of magic. But alas, enough talking, we must get Severus to his chambers." Dobby was walking up to the hospital bed.

"I is needing Master Snape sir." Dobby said, looking at Remus, who was holding Snape's hand in his own, still seated next to the bed.

"Sorry." Remus mumbled, then let go.

After Severus was covered with a dark blanket on the stretcher, they disappeared.

* * *

So I said two more chapters previously, but I'm thinking more than that. I'll keep writing until the time comes to stop. Thanks for reading! Don't forget to review!


	4. Barely Awake

Chapter 4

"Dobby." Remus said, the elf appeared next to Snape's bed.

"What be Master Remus needing sir?" Dobby said.

"Get Poppy, quick." The elf disappeared.

"Severus, Severus it's alright, you're home." Remus was trying to comfort the struggling man.

* * *

After a very long 14 days of being in his dungeon, finally, he began to rise from the depths of unconsciousness. Now he was laying in bed, trying to pull in oxygen to his lungs, unsuccessfully.

He could hear the faint voice of someone familiar, but he couldn't focus on that now. He was choking on nothing, his lungs began to burn with the struggle, and he could feel the pull of what felt like a long line of stitches down his chest and stomach. He tried to calm himself, closing his eyes and trying to pull in deeper breathes, but to no avail. He still was struggling. Finally his eyes opened to find Remus's scarred face staring back at him. His mouth was moving soundlessly to Severus, his eyebrows arched in concern. Finally, his lungs opened up so he could breath. Poppy was there now, she was fiddling with something off to the left.

"You're alright, Severus." Remus had his hand on Severus's' shoulder.

He could see the old scars on Remus' face and the worried look cast across it. His short breaths could be heard throughout the room.

"Severus how are you feeling?" Poppy asked, her face appearing next to Remus'.

"Superb." Came his breathy answer. Remus and Poppy both gave a soft chuckle.

"How long… have I been out." His voice was raspy and his breaths were still short.

"Several days I'm afraid…" Remus answered.

"Several?" Snape questioned, his eyes showing his doubt.

Remus glanced at Poppy, then looked back at Snape.

"14 days." Poppy answered for him.

Snape was silent, "So why do I still feel like a bludger's used me for target practice." Snape asked. Poppy sensed the tension. He wasn't going to like the answer to his question. The moment she opened her mouth, Snape's world was going to flip upside down.

"Severus… You remember the night we came to retrieve you?" Remus asked. Snape nodded. "Voldemort had used some very powerful dark magic, along with the Death Eaters cursing and beating you within an inch of your life, the amount of dark magic was all just too much for even the strongest wizard to handle. Magical remedies can't heal the injuries you've sustained, so we're having to use the muggle alternative." Remus stopped.

"Why do I sense you're not telling me something, Remus." Snape's head was pounding, his chest and stomach burned.

"Severus, the other thing is that someone used an experimental type of curse called a Grappling Curse. Bellatrix designed it to be cast at a specific part of the body to, essentially, debilitate that body part to decrease your chance of escape, attack, defense, anything... That curse was used on you, Severus."

Snape's eyes closed at that moment. Poppy was standing next to his bed, her hand reaching for his shoulder, but then she stopped, knowing he needed the time to wrap his mind around the situation.

"Where?" Snape said quietly.

This time Poppy answered, "Your leg. She managed to send two of the curses, but only one made it to its target. This specific Grappling Curse was derived from the crucio curse... She...She wasn't looking to lessen your chance of fighting back… she was looking to cause you pain Severus. I'm afraid she may have succeeded."

Only then did Severus really realize that along with his pounding head, aching chest, and searing stomach, his legs had a tingling sensation running through them, like they had been asleep for a while and were now waking up.

"We used an epidural, a muggle method of numbing an area, to keep you from the pain, we needed you to recover… It should be wearing off by now, we're going to begin using doses of pain medication so we can get you acclimated to the pain without the help of the epidural. I need you to let me know as soon as you start feeling something, Severus. The sooner we get you settled, the faster the recovery." She finished. She gave a glance towards Remus, then made her way towards the door before stopping. "I'm glad you're okay, Severus." And left.

Snape covered his face with both his hands. Remus was silent, listening to the pained breaths of his friend. He sat on the edge of the bed, "Severus…" He didn't answer. "I know this is a lot to take in, and you'll have a long recovery… but I want you to know you're not alone in this. Albus, Poppy, Minerva, me, everyone. We're here for you."

When Snape's hands did not move from their position on the man's pale face, Remus gave his uninjured leg a pat and stood to leave, he made it to the heavy dungeon door before-

"Thank you, Remus." Came the muffled response.

An etch of a smile broke it's way onto Remus' lips, and he stepped out into the cool corridor of the dungeons.


	5. You're Never Alone

Chapter 5

~2 long months later~

"Remus." Dumbledore's hand rested on his shoulder. "Let him be." Severus had hobbled off down the long corridor to his dungeons once again.

Severus had made his way to the large wooden door concealing his private chambers. His aching leg was screaming at him to sit down. He wanted the pain, he wanted the anger to be unleashed within him but he had no outlet. He stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, clenched fists turning white as he lent on the counter.

His hair was a curtain around his pale face. Then the anger became too great.

With a barbaric scream he punched the mirror as hard as he could. The glass shattered into shining shards across the room, some of them reflecting the now dripping crimson falling in rivulets from his hand. Severus let out a shuddering breath, then gave a relieved smile that disappeared seconds later. He reached for the dark towel hanging behind him and wrapped his bleeding hand in it.

"Dobby." He spoke.

The house elf appeared, "Yes Master Snape?"

"Fetch Madam Pomfrey for me please."

With a snap the elf was gone.

She wouldn't like this, he knew. But he would ignore her until she patched it up.

As Poppy entered the room she let out a sigh "Oh Severus."

Severus noticed the saddened expression on her face and something tugged inside him. These people really did care about him didn't they? It had been so obvious these past few weeks and yet Severus had completely ignored it on most occasions. He kept telling himself that they were pestering him because of the injuries he sustained only for his role as their spy, he was a death eater, either legitimately or not, he wore the robes and the mask of Death and that would never change, and that was valuable to the Order. But no, that was an ignorant assumption of course. The assumption of a blind man. Poppy began cleaning his hand and wrapping it in gauze.

"I really wish you'd let us help you, Severus. We are all extremely worried about you, you know?"

Severus let out a breath and let his head hang.

"Alright, well you'll have to come see me soon to get this changed. In the meantime, I'm taking you on a walk. You need to get out instead of avoiding everyone all the time."

Severus groaned, "A nap first, Poppy."

"Very well, but I will be back to get you in 2 hours." She left without another word.

It had felt like two minutes before Poppy was waking him.

"Come on. Up you go, gotta get that leg loosened up before the start of term you know."

She helped him sit up, before Snape swatted at her hand, she then went to wait by the door.

Remus came walking down the hallway, before Snape could stand, "Poppy, you're needed in the hospital wing, some students got into a hex battle."

Poppy huffed, "I was just going to get Severus outside for a bit, do you mind taking him instead?" She asked.

"Not at all."

As Poppy left, Snape began to stand, pushing his dark wooden derby cane underneath him.

They walked the grounds of the ancient castle, Remus altering his pace to match Severus' struggling gate.

"I'm not a dog, Remus." Severus muttered.

"I never said you were, Severus." Remus replied. "I can leave if you wish?" Remus mentioned.

When Severus didn't reply, he took that as his answer.

"How are you faring these days? Poppy doesn't tell me much."

"Fine." Was the dark man's reply.

"I hear you're planning on returning to teaching when the term starts." Remus paused, waiting to see if he would get a reaction, he didn't. "That's fantastic news, Severus. I'm glad you're pushing yourself to go back to what you love."

They walked in silence for several minutes, down the path towards the lake. They made their way around it until they could see the Quidditch stadium standing proudly in the distance, the old broom shed sat quietly in comparison to the large arena.

"It's quiet." Severus said out of the silence.

"Yes, it is." Remus replied in reflection.

"I always loved Hogwarts in the summer. Every year I remember the last day of class begging Albus to let me stay. I was never allowed, but I knew it wasn't Albus's fault of course. I had pinned it on him anyways." Severus finished. He stared down at his old black shoes and the end of the derby cane that now kept him from putting too much weight on his leg.

"It would make sense for something like this to happen to me, wouldn't it?" He continued staring. "The spy for The Order, for the wizarding world… for Albus. I risked my life day in and day out for our cause, it was only a matter of time before it either killed me or nearly killed me. I suppose it's decided which path it would take." He picked up his cane and held it in both hands, admiring the glossy black wood it was composed of. "I'd like to think ending my role as a spy would make me a better person. A happier one, but I fear it's tainted me beyond repair." He dropped the end of his cane back to the ground and lent heavily on it, staring back up at the stadium.

"It's never too late, Severus. The kind of sacrifices you've made for our people and our cause. It can never be repaid, but we can try. I believe we can fix whatever is broken within you Severus, it won't be easy. But we can damn try." Remus placed a hand on the man's bony shoulder, giving it a squeeze then dropping his hand to his side again.

"Thank you, Remus. I know it's out of character for me to be so truthful, but since this all happened, I've felt I had been holding my breath for so long, and I've finally been able to breath again."

"I won't pretend to understand what that's like, but know you have plenty of people up in that castle that are willing to fight for you Severus. And we'll always be here."

"Thank you. I think it's about time we headed back."

"We've only been out here for a little while, are you sure you don't want to continue?"

"I fear my leg won't be able to get me back unless we turn around now."

Remus noticed a hint of humour in the dark man's tone, and smiled faintly before joining the limping, but somehow still graceful, man in front of him.

A/N: Wow has it been a while. I'd like to apologize for ditching this story for so long. I really do love the topic of this story, and yet I managed to fall into a hole of writer's block for the longest time. But I'm back, my fire has been lit again! I've written another chapter after this one already because I'd really love to get this one finished so my favorite readers (that's you) can feel like I've done something right here (lol).

I won't promise my sudden absence won't occur again, but I will try my best to stick with it.

I hope you all enjoy the next installment of A Crow's Call, please enjoy the read and leave some comments if you'd like.

Enjoy!

~Archer

Oh P.S. I forgot to mention that I won't be posting the second chapter for a few days, It's already written but I need to get my affairs in order before I release it. I have a few ideas on where I want this story to go, and I need to make sure everything is where it's supposed to be. Anyways, thanks for reading!

P.P.S Another update, I've just grudgingly discovered some alarming errors in my first two chapters that could end up screwing up the plot. I'll be updating those in the next few days so that everything looks nice and wrinkle free. So if you'd like to check in from time to time on the changes, please do!


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